Aliens and Berserkers

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The galaxy holds a large number of sentient races in it. Why, then, have so few reached Earth? Why can't humans detect communication between aliens?

The answer's origin lies somewhere in the Andromeda galaxy. Eons ago, an Andromedan civilization sought to explore their galaxy through the use of self-replicating probes: Each probe would reach a solar system, explore it, and use the materials in its area to create an additional number of probes; each probe would then go on to explore another star system. The probes' creators had hoped that in this way, despite the limit imposed by the speed of light, the entire galaxy could one day be explored.

Unfortunately, the self-replicating probes inevitably began to evolve: With millions and billions of copies being created, it was unavoidable that mistakes would occur over the course of replication. Eventually, one such mutation was such that the resulting probe, instead of creating a given number of new probes, would build as many as it could, entirely consuming every scrap of raw material it could use within the star system it had reached. The billions of resulting probes struck at other star systems, devouring everything in their path to create even more probes.

These robotic swarms, who would come to be known as the Berserkers, wiped Andromeda clean, turning all the matter they could use into more Berserkers. Then, the gigantic swarm headed toward the Milky Way.

The first system in our galaxy that they reached was home to an advanced magic-using civilization. The aliens used world-shaking spells to fend off the Berserkers; their very gods fought by their side. They could not slow the machines down by even a minute. That world's last act was to magically send out a telepathic shout across the galaxy, letting all sentient races witness their destruction at the Berserkers' hands. Living beings were eaten alive, building were dismantled, the very planet was taken apart for raw material; even the gods themselves were devoured as the Berserkers shifted to the psychic plane and overwhelmed them with vastly superior numbers.

The telepathic warning caused panic across the galaxy (with the notable exception of Earth: Earth's magic had been banished to Limbo at the time the warning reached it, and as such, no-one was able to perceive it). Every alien race in the Milky Way has been trying to lay low in the hope of staying beneath the Berserkers' radar for now.

Those that the Berserkers reach can never stand against them: With eons and eons of evolution behind them, the Berserkers are extremely advanced robots (power level 15) with extremely varied powers; the dissimilarities between them mean that they do not possess a collective weakness, and their numbers are so great, that a trillion of Berserkers may often constitute little more than a scouting force.

The threat of the Berserkers has started a galactic dark age, as every civilization hides from the swarm. Some individuals choose to take advantage of that: Mercenaries such as Tagton and warlords such as Garzor can thrive in the absence of interstellar communication.

Plot seeds:

• Harbringer of Doom: A single robot of alien origin reaches Earth, and begins wreaking havoc. The heroes may need to stop it, then prevent its advanced technology from falling in the wrong hands...But can they realize in time the Berserker is just the first of many, many to come?

• Warlords of the Dark Age: Garzor may not be the only alien warlord who sets his eyes on Earth. Another alien warlord, taking advantage of the galactic dark age, may decide to make himself the king of a backwater planet...

• Dark Dawn: It looks like the end of the world is near, as the full might of the Berserkers descend upon Earth. Very few beings (Upstart, Tagton, The Living Nebula) actually know what they are, but regardless, Earth's defenses are vastly outmatched. In the face of such astronomically superior odds, can the heroes figure out a way to save the day?